US444830A - Signor of one-third to charles davis-carter - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.)

' K. P. W. GUENTHER.

FLUTE.

Patented Jan. 20, 1891.

a m m w n H 3 5 INVENTOR.

. UNITED I STATES PATENT OEEIeE.

KARL FREDERICK lVILLlAM G-UENTHER, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, AS SIGNOR OF ONE-THIRD TO CHARLES DAVIS-CARTER, OE SAME PLACE.

"FLUTE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 444,830, dated January 20, 1891.

Application filed September 18, 1890. Serial No. 364,837. ,(No model.)

To all whom may concern:

Beit known that l, KARL FREDERICK WIL- LIAM GUENTHER, of Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Flutes, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description,reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of a flute provided with my improvement. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the mouth-piece and part of the flute-tube. Fig. 3 is a section 011 the line III III of Fig. 2.

Myinvention relates to an improvement in flutes, and is designed to obviate several bjections incident to flutes heretofore known and used, which have consisted of straight tubes with the embouchure or mouth-h0le at the side near the end. Such objections have been, first, the ditflculty of holding the flute in the constrained horizontal position required by the location of-the embouchure, which position makes it difficult to move the fingers properly in controlling the flnger-holes and keys, and makes flute playing, when long continued, somewhat laborious and tiresome to the hands and neck, and, second, the fact that the air, after being divided by the edges of the embouchure, so as to produce thenur sical notes, must travel in aspiral course at right angles to its direction at entering the flute att'ects the tone of the flute, necessitating special care and skill on the part of the player to produce true and accurate tones. My invention overcomes both these difliculties and affords a flute which is easy to hold and to manipulate, which produces the notes with comparatively little effort of the player,

and is much truer and more accurate in tone manipulate the finger-holes and keys,

than any other flute known to me.

As distinguished from the ordinary flute, in which. the mouth-hole at the side of the tube, my improved flute has a mouth-piece in which the mouth-hole is formed at the end of the tube, so that the instrument is held not horizontally, as formerly, but in the manner of a flageolet. The mouthpiece hasalateral enlargement in which are stoppers or corks, by which the tone of the flute may be regulated, and the mouth-hole is situate directly opposite to the end of the flute-tube,

so that a straight passage is afforded for the air from the mouth-hole to and into the tube. This improved mouth-piece may be applied to any of the known varieties of flutes, including the piccolo, fife, &c.

Iain aware that-for the purpose of providing an instrument which can be held in the fashion of a flageolet, a flute has been devised in which at the end of the tube there is an U- shaped head having an end mouthhole. Vhile such instrument is of course easy to hold, it does not give a better musical note, and is, in fact, inferior in this regard to the ordinary side-hole flute. It differs essentially from my flute, in that the air is caused to pass indirectly from the mouth-hole to the flute-tube, while in mine the mouth-hole is directly opposite to the flute-tube, giving a direct passage to the air, which results in the advantages above stated.

Referring now to the drawings, 2 is the flute-tube, preferably made in sections and having the usual finger-holes and keys, as de- 7 5 sired. This part of the flute may be made in any known manner.

3 is the hollow mouth-piece, which is of T shape, having at the end a lateral enlargement consisting, preferably, of lateral tubu- 8o lar portions to 1), containing the adjustable stoppers a, which may be constructed in the manner in which the stopper at the end of the common flute is now made.

0 is the embouchure or mouth-hole, which may be of the usual oval form, and is situate opposite to the end of the tube 5 5 are hooks or projections on the flutetube, affording means by which, with the thumbs of the player, the flute may be upheld, so as to leave the lingers perfectly free to As before stated, the flute is held in the manner of a llagcolet; but the notes are pro duced by placing the lip next to the mouth 5 hole and blowing laterally over the same in like manner as in playing the ordinaryflute.

By adjustment of the stoppers to and from the mouth-hole the pitch of the flute can be regulated in conformityto the variations pro- I00 duced by elongating the sections of the flutetube in the usual manner. In using this mouth-piece it \villbe found not only that the flute can be held and managed with less muscular elfort, but that the sound is much easier to produce and that the notes are clearer and are musically truer than in the ordinary flute. The advantages of my improved instrument in these respects are very important, and will be appreciated by the skilled musician.

In the drawings I show what I deem to be the preferable forms and proportions of the parts; but these may be varied by those skilled in the art Without variance from the invention as defined in the following claims. Thus I believe that I am the first to devise a flute having an enlarged head at the mouth-piece and a mouth-hole at the end of the mouthpiece direetly opposite the tube, so that a straight passage for the Wind from the mouthpiece into the tube is afforded, and I intend to claim these features broadly.

I ,claim 1. A flute having a tubular portion, a lateral enlargement at the end, and an end flute l mouth-hole situatedirectly opposite to the tubular portion, so that a straight passage for the wind from the mouth-piece through the KARL FREDERICK WILLIAM GUEN'IHER.

lVitnes ses:

R. H. WHITTLESEY, THOMAS W. BAKEWELL,

tubular portion is aiforded, substantially as

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